Scarlets scrum-half Kieran Hardy has been called into Wales’ World Cup squad.

Number eight Taulupe Faletau was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament after suffering a broken arm during Wales’ 43-19 victory over Georgia on Saturday.

But Wales feel they have enough existing back-row options to cover Faletau’s absence and Hardy, who will join the squad in Versailles on Sunday night, will increase scrum-half resources alongside Gareth Davies and Tomos Williams.

Wales head coach Warren Gatland said: “We feel we have a number of options in the back row at the moment, so we’ve decided to call up Kieran to give us extra cover at scrum-half and to take some pressure off from a training perspective.”

Hardy was left out of Wales’ initial World Cup squad after Gatland opted to select only two scrum-halves in Davies and Williams.

Wales assistant coach Jonathan Humphreys admits Wales’ mood after topping their World Cup group with an unbeaten record has been tempered by injuries to Faletau and Gareth Anscombe.

Fly-half Anscombe withdrew 45 minutes before kick-off against Georgia in Nantes due to a groin injury.

In terms of replacing Faletau against quarter-final opponents Argentina next Saturday, Aaron Wainwright is likely to switch across the back-row from blindside flanker.

Full-back Liam Williams was on crutches after the Georgia game following a blow to his knee but, while he could miss training in the early part of this week, Wales are hopeful about his quarter-final prospects.

“It is a big loss, he is a true world-class player,” Wales forwards specialist Humphreys said of Faletau.

“He is great around the place, but in a tournament these things happen and we have been very lucky in terms of the amount of injuries that we’ve had.

“But it still doesn’t detract from the loss of him. We will have a look over the next 24-48 hours (about a replacement) and make a decision then.

“You can’t replace what Toby (Faletau) gives, in terms of his intelligence and what he does, how he always turns up at the right place and makes the right decision at the right time.

“There is a huge onus now on everybody else to bring more.

“We are delighted that we topped the group, but then when you have close members of the squad who have been injured you are clearly down about that. It affects the mood.

“It is a tough one for Toby, but hopefully Gareth won’t be too long. He felt something in the warm-up and (we) made the decision not to play him. We will know over the next 36 hours what his chances are.”

If Wainwright moves positions, the vacancy at blindside flanker could mean a recall for seasoned campaigner Dan Lydiate, while Exeter’s Christ Tshiunza is also an option, along with switching captain Jac Morgan from openside and handing Tommy Reffell the number seven shirt.

Humphreys added: “We are blessed with the options that we have, but it still doesn’t detract from fact that Toby has been a massive player for us. Whoever steps in I am sure will step up to the plate.

“I think Aaron has been exceptional and I and he know there is more in him.”

Anscombe’s injury meant a late call to the starting line-up for Sam Costelow, while Dan Biggar is continuing his recovery from a pectoral muscle strain and should feature in Marseille.

“There is no thinking, you just have to do what you’ve got to do for the best of the team,” Costelow said, following his sudden elevation from the bench.

“Those senior boys talking to me, just telling me to do my job and to relax, that was massive for me, especially as a young 10. I am just glad we got the job done.

“You can never switch off, especially in this pressured environment. You have got to be ready at all stages. I did my homework, I knew the role and luckily it went well.”

Ireland centre Stuart McCloskey revealed he had considered retiring from international rugby as he savoured the special memory of making a World Cup debut in front of his newborn son.

McCloskey came off the bench to replace the injured Mack Hansen in the first half of Saturday evening’s 36-14 win over Scotland in Paris to help his country set up a quarter-final clash with New Zealand.

The 31-year-old Ulster player has endured a stop-start Test career and been forced to wait for opportunities behind Bundee Aki, Garry Ringrose and Robbie Henshaw.

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With Henshaw sidelined and Hansen needing to be withdrawn, he finally made his first appearance in France, an occasion made even more memorable by the presence of 11-day-old Kasper, who was carried on to the Stade de France pitch at full-time.

“I’d say you’ll look at those pictures in 20-odd years and it will be pretty cool,” said McCloskey, who required special permission to return home for the birth. “He was fast asleep, he seemed all right

“I got home last Monday and my wife gave birth on the Tuesday. It worked out really well and then I was obviously back into the camp at the end of the week, and it was an unfortunate injury to get me in, but it’s been a brilliant week.”

McCloskey made his Ireland debut in 2016 but his cameo against the Scots was only his 15th cap.

Speaking of having to bide his time for opportunities, he said: “It was frustrating and it wasn’t.

“I always look back to what it was before last summer and I wasn’t involved at all and I was thinking about calling it a day with Ireland stuff and I came back in, played a load of games and finally became a part of the team I thought, so it’s nice.

“My goal was to get to a World Cup and I made that and whatever happens from now I’m fine with it.

“I know if you put me on the field I will perform well, but if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. I’m not going to sit in the shadows and be angry about it.”

Ireland have no concerns about potentially thrusting Test rookie Jimmy O’Brien into a World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand as they anxiously wait on the availability of first-choice wings Mack Hansen and James Lowe.

Hansen was forced off for a head injury assessment in the first half of Saturday evening’s 36-14 win over Scotland before suffering a calf issue on his return.

Lowe departed at half-time due to a bang in the eye after claiming the first of his side’s six tries in Paris.

Versatile back O’Brien, who made his international debut last autumn, is the only member of Andy Farrell’s 33-man squad yet to feature in France and has started just four Tests across seven caps.

The 26-year-old may well be needed against the All Blacks as, in addition to the fitness concerns for Lowe and Hansen, veteran wing Keith Earls is nursing a slight hamstring problem.

Defence coach Simon Easterby said: “It’s probably a little too early to say either way but, if they get ruled out, Jimmy’s been waiting in the wings and did an incredible job last November to come in with a couple of late call-ups.

“There’s no issue with Jimmy if he gets an opportunity. Hopefully we’ll have a full deck to choose from come Tuesday or Wednesday.

“It’s mad when there’s a late kick-off, we’re getting used to them, but it takes a bit of time for injuries to settle and then for guys to get assessed.

“In the next 24 to 48 hours we’ll be able to get a better read on those guys, but everyone’s in good form today, which is nice.”

Centre Garry Ringrose and scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park were deployed as makeshift wide men in the second period at Stade de France as Ireland breezed into the knockout rounds while eliminating the Scots.

Earls was absent from the matchday 23 along with centre Robbie Henshaw, who also has a hamstring problem.

“It’s one of those things that at a push he could have been involved this weekend, and it was probably one of those we felt wasn’t the right time to risk him,” Easterby said of Earls.

“But we were really pleased it was flagged when it was and we had the opportunity to make the call early enough.

“Fingers crossed he’s fully fit for this week.

“They’ll both be running today, Earlsy and Robbie, and will sort of be progressing into training Monday or Tuesday.”

Lock James Ryan, who injured his other wrist after sustaining a similar issue against South Africa a fortnight ago, is another player being assessed.

Ireland are preparing to face the “standard bearers of the World Cup” after topping Pool B thanks to four consecutive wins.

Three-time champions New Zealand defeated Joe Schmidt’s Ireland 46-14 in the quarter-finals of the 2019 tournament in Japan.

The All Blacks have extensive inside knowledge of Farrell’s men due to Schmidt joining their coaching set-up ahead of Ireland’s series success in New Zealand last summer.

“I’m sure Joe’s influence certainly has increased in the past 12 months, but we’ve got to be excited about playing the standard bearers of the World Cup,” said Easterby.

“Certainly Joe will know plenty about what we’re about, the individuals within our group, but we’ll have an insight as well into what they might try and do as well.

“So I think it’s finely balanced and it’s an interesting sub-plot to the game itself.”

Ben Earl admits memories of August’s shock defeat by Fiji flashed through England’s minds against Samoa until they continued their recent knack of winning from positions of adversity.

England completed the World Cup group phase with a perfect record after edging Seilala Mapusua’s Islanders 18-17, but it took a converted 74th-minute touch down by Danny Care on top of a last-gasp try-saving tackle from the replacement scrum-half to dig out victory in Lille on Saturday.

Samoa played their best rugby in the second quarter and at one point led 17-8 to evoke memories of Fiji storming Twickenham in the build-up to the tournament.

But, as against Wales at home in that same series and Argentina at the start of the World Cup, England were able to forge a path out of the crisis – a strength previously missing from their game.

“We probably had glimpses of that Fiji match at Twickenham not long ago,” said Earl, whose team had already qualified for the quarter-finals as Pool D winners.

“But the growth in the team is that we’ve learned how to find a way to win ugly. And we’ve shown that twice now in this tournament.

“What was most pleasing as someone who was on the pitch is that we never felt too stressed. We felt that there was going to be something that was going to break them.

“We said in the changing room that we know after this performance stuff is going to come out, that we’ve taken a step back, or whatever. But we don’t see it like that.

“The performance highlighted some holes in our game, but we knew they were there and we found a way to win ugly. Sometimes winning ugly is the most rewarding.

“That was always looking like a bit of a banana skin for us and and we’ve come away with the win and with four points.

“We’re four from four – and if someone had offered us that seven or eight weeks ago, we’d have snapped their hand off.”

Steve Borthwick has been given plenty to mull over for the quarter-final against likely opponents Fiji, not least whether the creative axis of George Ford and Owen Farrell should be retained in Marseille on Sunday.

In one significant lapse in concentration, Farrell saw the shot clock run down as he was taking a penalty, but otherwise it was an evening of personal triumph for England’s captain after his eight-point haul propelled him ahead of Jonny Wilkinson as the nation’s leading scorer with 1,186.

“As a player and as a friend, some of the knowledge and some of the standards Owen set for me as a young player coming through, I can safely say I wouldn’t be half the player I am if I hadn’t played with him for such a long time,” Earl said of his Saracens team-mate.

“Owen won’t want to shine too much light on it, but that accolade is huge. Some of the players on that list are among the greatest who ever played the game.”

Ireland captain Johnny Sexton is braced to face a wounded New Zealand side plotting revenge in a mouthwatering Rugby World Cup quarter-final.

Andy Farrell’s men have topped the Test rankings since securing a landmark tour success against the All Blacks last summer.

Ireland set up another meeting with the three-time world champions by dismantling Scotland 36-14 on Saturday evening in Paris to win Pool B ahead of South Africa.

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“They’ve already said it’s one that they want and when they’re hurting and they want to put it right, that’s the biggest challenge in rugby, to try and beat them when they’re in that frame of mind,” Sexton said of New Zealand.

“Two teams will both be under pressure for different reasons and it will be who copes with that the best and who can put their game out there on the biggest day when the pressure is on.

“We’ve played New Zealand plenty of times and they’ve come into some good form themselves over the last few weeks.

“It’s going to be a hell of a game and we just need to prepare right over the next few days and get the best performance we can out there.

“We need to be ready for it.”

Fly-half Sexton, who is due to retire after the tournament, prolonged his career by at least one more week by leading his country to a thumping Stade de France success which eliminated Scotland.

Ireland emphatically banished any fears of suffering their own early exit thanks to first-half tries from James Lowe and Iain Henderson, plus Hugo Keenan’s double, before Dan Sheehan and Garry Ringrose added to the Scots’ misery.

While Farrell’s side move on to a showdown with the All Blacks, the Springboks will take on hosts France in another tantalising last-eight clash.

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“We always knew most likely we’d play France or New Zealand,” said 38-year-old Sexton. “There’s no easy option there.

“All our focus was, ‘let’s win the pool’. You don’t pick and choose, you just do your best.

“We’re exactly where we wanted to be in terms of we won the pool and now we’re into the quarter-final.”

Ireland have injury concerns regarding wings Mack Hansen, Lowe and Keith Earls and lock James Ryan.

Head coach Farrell feels there is more to come from his in-form team and urged his players to embrace the upcoming challenge, describing it as “proper living”.

“I don’t think and neither do the team think that we’ve played our best rugby yet,” said the Englishman, following a 17th successive Test victory.

“We know where we want to go and want we’re trying to achieve. Will we ever get there? I don’t know.

“It’s days like next week that’s coming where we need to find out a little bit more about ourselves. These lads are certainly willing to do that.

“We’ll treat this week, I’m sure once we recover properly, with a spring in our step because if you can’t get excited about what’s coming…this is proper living now.

“This is exactly where you want to be and these boys have been waiting for opportunities, big games to show what they’ve learnt for a while now.

“It doesn’t get any bigger than next week so we’ll relish that.”

Jonathan Humphreys admits that Wales’ mood after topping their Rugby World Cup group with an unbeaten record has been tempered by injuries to Taulupe Faletau and Gareth Anscombe.

Number eight Faletau, who suffered a broken arm during Wales’ 43-19 victory over Georgia, is out of the tournament.

Fly-half Anscombe, meanwhile, withdrew 45 minutes before kick-off in Nantes due to a groin injury.

No decision has yet been made on a squad replacement for Faletau, although Aaron Wainwright is likely to switch across the back-row from blindside flanker for next Saturday’s quarter-final in Marseille.

And full-back Liam Williams was on crutches after the Georgia game following a blow to his knee, but while he could miss training in the early part of this week Wales are hopeful about his quarter-final prospects.

“It is a big loss, he is a true world-class player,” Wales assistant coach and forwards specialist Humphreys said, of Faletau.

“He is great around the place, but in a tournament these things happen and we have been very lucky in terms of the amount of injuries that we’ve had.

“But it still doesn’t detract from the loss of him. We will have a look over the next 24-48 hours (about a replacement) and make a decision then.

“You can’t replace what Toby (Faletau) gives, in terms of his intelligence and what he does, how he always turns up at the right place and makes the right decision at the right time.

“There is a huge onus now on everybody else to bring more.

“We are delighted that we topped the group, but then when you have close members of the squad who have been injured you are clearly down about that. It affects the mood.

“It is a tough one for Toby, but hopefully Gareth won’t be too long. He felt something in the warm-up and (we) made the decision not to play him. We will know over the next 36 hours what his chances are.”

If Wainwright moves positions, the vacancy at blindside flanker could mean a recall for seasoned campaigner Dan Lydiate, while Exeter’s Christ Tshiunza is also an option, along with switching captain Jac Morgan from openside and handing Tommy Reffell the number seven shirt.

Humphreys added: “We are blessed with the options that we have, but it still doesn’t detract from fact that Toby has been a massive player for us. Whoever steps in I am sure will step up to the plate.

“I think Aaron has been exceptional, and I and he know there is more in him.”

Anscombe’s injury meant a late call to the starting line-up for Sam Costelow, while Dan Biggar is continuing his recovery from a pectoral muscle strain and should feature in Marseille.

“There is no thinking, you just have to do what you’ve got to do for the best of the team,” Costelow said, following his sudden elevation from the bench.

“Those senior boys talking to me, just telling me to do my job and to relax, that was massive for me, especially as a young 10. I am just glad we got the job done.

“You can never switch off, especially in this pressured environment. You have got to be ready at all stages. I did my homework, I knew the role and luckily it went well.”

Sione Tuipulotu was despondent as he faced up to the realisation that he and his Scotland team-mates are flying home after suffering pool-stage elimination from the World Cup.

The Scots arrived in France at the start of September with high expectations after climbing to fifth in the world on the back of a string of impressive results and performances.

However, they were ultimately unable to overcome the challenge of being grouped alongside defending champions South Africa and the world’s top-ranked side, Ireland, in a top-heavy Pool B.

After bouncing back from their 18-3 defeat to the Boks with heavy wins over Tonga and Romania, the Scots’ bid to reach the quarter-final was killed off by a 36-14 blitzing from the rampant Irish in Paris on Saturday night.

“I’m very disappointed,” said centre Tuipulotu. “We’re out of the tournament now and it feels like all our hard work and stuff like that has come to an end.

“I know there’s more rugby to be played after this World Cup but you’re in a World Cup to win it and now we’re out of it. I’m really gutted. We had a big travelling support, so apologies to them.

“We wanted to do better in the tournament but we ran into two pretty good teams in our pool and ultimately just got beaten by better teams.”

As he tried to process the disappointment of his first World Cup coming to an end, Tuipuloto, 26, admitted it was difficult to think about the future.

“I’m very upset and I don’t really know how to deal with it,” he said. “We’ve got a good team with good blokes in our changing room. But it’s just frustrating to be saying the same type of messages after tournaments like these.

“I suppose there’s another tournament and another tournament after that and maybe the right thing to say now is ‘we’ll be better in the next tournament’ but right now I’m just feeling gutted.”

Rory Darge admitted Ireland – who scored after 63 seconds and were 26-0 up at half-time – showed Scotland why they are the top-ranked side on the planet at Stade de France.

The Irish stopped the Scots getting any reward for the sustained pressure they exerted in the first quarter of the match and then took most of the chances that came their way at the other end.

“They are the number one team in the world and they showed it,” said flanker Darge. “We could have been better in a lot of things, taken our chances when we had a lot of ball in their 22 at the start of the game.

“Once they get in behind with some of those carries, they are very, very good. They withheld a lot of what we threw at them in that first 20.

“Obviously the scoreline is what it is and that’s off the back of them being brutally clinical and we weren’t.”

Andy Farrell insists a World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand is “as tough as it gets” after “little old Ireland” topped Pool B thanks to a six-try demolition of Scotland.

The rampant Six Nations champions emphatically underlined their status as Test rugby’s top-ranked side by banishing any lingering doubts of an early exit with a crushing 36-14 success which eliminated the Scots.

Ireland will return to Paris next Saturday for a showdown with the All Blacks seeking to make history by progressing beyond the last eight of the tournament for the first time.

Head coach Farrell led his side to a landmark series success in New Zealand last summer and is braced for another major test following statement Stade de France victories over reigning champions South Africa and Scotland.

“New Zealand are a fantastic side, and for little old Ireland to be talked about in the same bracket as the All Blacks shows how far we’ve come as a rugby-playing nation,” he said.

“The respect we’ve got for New Zealand is through the roof.

“The form they’ve got at this moment in time is top drawer and I’m sure that they will be relishing this fixture to try and put a few things right. It’s tough, it’s as tough as it gets.

“Two weeks ago (against South Africa), it was a tough game and this one was knock-out type rugby so it gets a whole lot tougher next week against the All Blacks and hopefully they will need to be at their best to beat us as well.”

James Lowe’s early try settled any Irish nerves in Saint-Denis before Hugo Keenan crossed either side of a score from the recalled Iain Henderson to quickly take the game away from shell-shocked Scotland.

Dan Sheehan and Garry Ringrose added to the opposition’s embarrassment, prior to consolation tries from Scottish pair Ewan Ashman and Ali Price.

Farrell must wait to discover the true cost of a feisty affair in the French capital, with wings Mack Hansen and Lowe and replacement lock James Ryan each sustaining injuries.

“Obviously, we’ll see how they pull up in the morning but Mack went off with a HIA (head injury assessment) and when he came back on he felt his calf straight away, so we got him off,” said Farrell.

“James Ryan has a bit of a knock on his wrist that we have to assess more, so we’ll see how he is now.

“James Lowe got a bang in the eye, his eye shut and he couldn’t really see much. His vision was coming back towards the end of the game, which is good.

“Then, a few more bangs and bruises that we’ll need to assess tomorrow.”

Ireland once again performed a celebratory lap of honour in front of tens of thousands of jubilant Irish supporters.

Farrell savoured another special occasion, while wishing he could simultaneously enjoy the “bonkers” scenes back home.

“My wife and me two girls were there, that’s why I was singing to them,” he said.

“I think it’s amazing, the songs at the end of the game, I love all that.

“We got a bit of stick, didn’t we, for walking around against South Africa, but we walk round and thank the fans after every game.

“It’s the least we can do when they turn up in their thousands like they’ve done.

“We play for them, we talk about it every week. I talked about it before the game today in the dressing room, it means more than what people think, 100 per cent.

“I know that France is buzzing with Irish people, but I believe it’s bonkers back home. We’re torn a bit, enjoying it with the fans back home or stay here? We’ll stay here for now!”

Gregor Townsend admitted Ireland were simply too good for his Scotland team to handle as their World Cup dream ended with a chastening 36-14 defeat by the world’s top-ranked side in Paris on Saturday night.

After losing their opening match to South Africa, the Scots had to win with a bonus point or by denying the Irish a losing bonus in order to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Their hopes were dented by the concession of a try after just over a minute and the game was effectively over by half-time as the Irish ran in another three scores before the break to lead 26-0.

Scotland rallied slightly to win the second half 14-10, but there was a sense of dejection at full-time as they departed the tournament at the first hurdle at a time when they are ranked fifth in the world.

“It’s a very disappointing result, we have gone out of the World Cup against the highest-ranked side in the world, and they were well ahead at half-time,” rued head coach Townsend.

“We played the number two side in the world in the opening game and it was a close game.

“In isolation, this is a really disappointing defeat against a very good side and one we believed we had the ability to beat.

“They were the better team tonight, they were excellent and it’s probably the best I have seen them play.

“It’s probably where we and they are in terms of the rankings and why now they are the favourites for the World Cup.”

Townsend did not feel James Lowe’s early try set the tone as Scotland went on to enjoy a spell of pressure thereafter, albeit without reward, before Ireland turned the screw in the lead-up to half-time.

“The early try wasn’t a factor as we managed in that first 20 minutes to put some good rugby together, but we didn’t put any points on the board,” said Townsend.

“The tries before half-time we could have defended better, but I have to give credit to Ireland as they executed very well and the game went away from us.

“In the second half, I was really proud of the effort and the intent to not allow the score to become a bigger one. We came back and showed who we were in attack.

“The game had gotten away from us, so we focused on winning back respect. To get two tries against such a top team, we’ll take a little bit out of that.

“We’re very disappointed with the result and the first-half performance, but credit to Ireland, who were very, very good.”

While the fact they were placed in a group alongside the world’s top-ranked side and the defending world champions counts as some mitigation for Scotland’s early exit, Townsend acknowledged his team were not at their best over the course of the tournament.

“We certainly have to do better, and the responsibility is mine,” he said. “We believed we could get out of this pool, and we still believed that after losing to South Africa with the response the players showed in training and the games they played (against Tonga and Romania), gave us an opportunity tonight, which we didn’t take.

“Ireland are a better team than us on tonight’s performance, and they’ve won 17 games in a row so they’ve clearly been the better team over the last couple of years. Now, if we can get on the journey they have been on the last few years then great – but it is easy saying that, it is another thing doing it.

“You become a better team through defeats as well as victories, and we’ve got to make sure that this defeat makes us a better team for the Six Nations coming up and the next World Cup, although at this point the Six Nations is much more relevant.”

Rampant Ireland set up tantalising quarter-final rematch against New Zealand by condemning ragged rivals Scotland to another early World Cup exit with a crushing 36-14 bonus-point success in Paris.

Gregor Townsend’s men required a heroic win by eight points or more at Stade de France to snatch progression at the expense of their opponents.

But Test rugby’s top-ranked nation emphatically underlined their status with a thrilling display of attacking verve to avoid major drama in a feisty encounter.

James Lowe’s early try settled any nerves before Hugo Keenan crossed either side of a score from the recalled Iain Henderson to quickly take the game away from the shell-shocked Scots before the break.

Dan Sheehan and Garry Ringrose added to the embarrassment before Scottish pair Ewan Ashman and Ali Price claimed quickfire consolations.

Ireland will take on the All Blacks in the last eight, seeking to avenge the 46-14 thrashing suffered at the same stage of the 2019 World Cup in Japan.

Head coach Andy Farrell perhaps has cause for concern ahead of that showdown due apparent injuries suffered by wings Mack Hansen and Lowe.

Scotland, meanwhile, face an early flight home for the second successive tournament, with South Africa going through as Pool B runners-up to take on hosts France.

Premature departures for Blair Kinghorn, Jamie Ritchie and Darcy Graham due to fitness issues contributed to their woes, while Ollie Smith was shown a yellow card for causing a mass brawl.

The Scots came into the competition with one of their most talented teams in years but, following a chastening evening in the French capital, were left to rue being placed in the most difficult group alongside the reigning champions and the world’s number one team.

Permutations, premature elimination and the slim possibility of the Springboks crashing out dominated the build-up to a titanic qualification shoot-out in Saint-Denis.

A deafening roar greeted the teams and the decibels were raised further among the dominant Irish support with just over a minute on the clock when Hansen sent Lowe over in the left corner after Ringrose dummied his way beyond Grant Gilchrist.

Scotland roared back and showed a statement of intent by kicking a series of penalties to the corner, forcing Ireland to ferociously repel prolonged pressure.

But their cause was not helped by losing full-back Kinghorn, whose 50th cap lasted just nine minutes, and captain Ritchie, while Ireland wing Hansen also went off.

Ireland’s defiant defending was matched equally by awesome attacking enterprise and they stretched the scoreboard significantly with two quickfire tries.

Delightful slick interplay from right to left unlocked the Scottish backline, culminating in Ringrose teeing up the onrushing Keenan in the 27th minute, before Henderson marked his first start of the tournament by bulldozing over minutes later.

Far from thinking about the knock-out stages, Scotland trudged down the tunnel at the break fearing humiliation.

Ireland’s well-oiled machine led 26-0 ahead at that stage with a bonus point in the bag after Johnny Sexton set up Keenan’s second and then sent over his third successful conversion.

Scotland desperately needed to show some fight and did so as tempers boiled over early in the second period during a melee sparked by Smith’s off-the-ball trip on Sexton.

Players from both sides piled in, with Pierre Schoeman and Sheehan ploughing over an advertising board, before instigator Smith was sin-binned.

Sheehan was on the floor again minutes later, this time diving over to claim Ireland’s fifth try before Farrell wisely withdrew talisman Sexton, in addition to five of his forwards.

Jack Crowley’s fine cross-field kick sent over Ringrose before Scottish resistance finally materialised in the shape of a pair of well-taken scores, each converted by the largely subdued Finn Russell.

Replacement hooker Ashman made an immediate impact by galloping over on the right to ensure his side were not whitewashed, before scrum-half Price finished a fine team move.

Yet their endeavours mattered little as Ireland comfortably marched on thanks to a 17th successive win and a ninth in a row against the eliminated Scots.

Owen Farrell admitted his relief that his shot clock blunder did not cost England victory as they scraped past Samoa in their final World Cup group game.

England needed a late Danny Care try to defeat magnificent Islander opposition in an error-ridden 18-17 victory in Lille that will have sent the spirits of likely quarter-final opponents Fiji soaring.

A crucial moment came in the 64th minute when Farrell was lining up a routine penalty with the team 17-11 behind only for the time to run out on the shot clock – the first time it has happened in this tournament.

“I didn’t see the clock. I wasn’t aware. It was above where I was picking my target. I got lost a little bit in the kick,” Farrell said.

“It wasn’t good enough and I’m glad for the team’s sake that it didn’t cost us. Hopefully it doesn’t happen again.”

England had already qualified for the quarter-finals as Pool D winners but this night in Lille was a backwards step that evoked memories of August’s dismal warm-up campaign.

Head coach Steve Borthwick accepted it was a poor performance but valued the hard-fought run out before the knockout phase begins.

“Immense credit to Samoa, I thought they played brilliantly,” said Borthwick, who revealed that Manu Tuilagi suffered an injury that forced him off.

“Samoa spoke about it being their World Cup final and that’s exactly how they played. They tested us and forced us into a lot of errors,” Borthwick said.

“It was a scrappy performance for a long period by us in a real tough Test. As we look towards next week, I wanted a tough Test – and that’s exactly what we got.

“There was a lot that was not at the required standard – lots of errors, mistakes, scrappiness and for a period there were too many penalties. And then the players got hold of it on the pitch and found a way to get the result.

“A lot has been said before about this England team when it is in tough circumstances.

“Now the team was in tough circumstances against Samoa. We didn’t want to be there, we didn’t want to play the way that got us in those tough circumstances but this team found a way out of it.”

Samoa head coach Seilala Mapusua feels less-established teams such as his Islanders are battling against “unconscious bias” from officials when they face the heavyweights.

“I asked the question if the referees have an unconscious bias when a tier-one team plays a tier-two team. I believe there is and I believe there has been in the past,” Mapusua said.

“I don’t think it’s anyone’s fault, it’s what I’ve seen in our game for the last however many years, since I was playing.

“My heart breaks for these boys. I thought they deserved a lot more than they got from that game.

“I felt we did enough to earn a victory. Such is the cruel nature of sport, it wasn’t to be. In terms of the effort it’s a pretty tough one to take.”

England were forced to dig deep in an 18-17 victory over Samoa that will have left probable World Cup quarter-final opponents Fiji licking their lips.

A dominant final quarter saw Samoa’s 17-8 lead eventually overhauled when Danny Care crossed with seven minutes left for a try that was converted by Owen Farrell.

It was a night of personal triumph for Farrell, who eclipsed Jonny Wilkinson’s total of 1,179 to become the nation’s highest points scorer, but a poor team performance will have taken the shine off that achievement.

Samoa finally discovered their mojo in the climax to a disappointing group campaign and they fell metres short with one last do-or-die assault that if successful would have produced a first-ever victory in the fixture.

A lingering sense of injustice hung over an early decision – made once the conversion had been taken – to chalk off Duncan Paia’aua’s try for a hard-to-detect knock-on that would have propelled the underdogs 19-8 ahead.

Until this night in Lille, England had not conceded a try for 160 minutes but they were breached twice by Samoa wing Nigel Ah-Wong – and it could have been more.

Their only consistent weapon was the driving line-out and Fiji will have watched the events at Stade Pierre-Mauroy with interest, seeing how rattled Steve Borthwick’s side became when faced with an incisive, off-loading attack.

England’s pack made an early impact but it was the sharp handling of Farrell and Joe Marchant that led to their first try in the 10th minute as Manu Tuilagi motored forwards before sending Ollie Chessum over in the left corner.

Tuilagi tore through the midfield once again as Samoa continued to be picked apart at will with George Ford and Farrell dovetailing well and their next drive ended with a penalty from their captain that saw Wilkinson’s record finally broken.

Play became ragged and England suffered as a result, their sloppy handling allowing Samoa to attack and the Islanders showed skill to thread the ball to wing Ah-Wong for a classy try.

Blue shirts poured through gaps in the favourites’ porous defence and they were unpicked again when Lima Sopoaga hoisted a crossfield kick for Ah-Wong to produce an inch-perfect finish.

Nothing seemed to be going right for England as they infringed at a line-out but they enjoyed a stroke of luck when Paia’aua’s score off Alex Mitchell’s poor clearance kick was disallowed.

A sloppy Farrell pass intended for Tuilagi invited more pressure and after going through several phases in which the tryline was tested Samoa ended the spell with a Sopoaga penalty.

England were losing every moment and they chose to play their trump card by bringing on Marcus Smith at Ford’s expense with Farrell moving to fly-half.

They appeared to have scored when their pack dragged Samoa into the trenches but Chessum’s try was ruled out and then Marchant was denied because of a forward pass.

Farrell landed one penalty but the shot clock expired on a second attempt and England were thrown a lifeline when Tumua Manu was shown a yellow card for tackling Farrell in the air.

Pinned back by scrum after scrum, Samoa eventually cracked when replacement scrum-half Care raced through a large gap and once Farrell converted England were back in front.

A last-gasp attack by Samoa almost swept them over but excellent scramble defence kept them out and the dream of an upset was extinguished.

Wales were left to count the cost of their Rugby World Cup victory over Georgia after number eight Taulupe Faletau suffered a broken arm and two other players were also injured.

Faletau, who has won more than 100 caps, will take no further part in the tournament as Wales build towards a quarter-final against probably Argentina or Japan in Marseille next weekend.

Wales head coach Warren Gatland said no decision had yet been made on a replacement for Faletau, although flanker Aaron Wainwright is an option to move across the back-row.

Fly-half Gareth Anscombe, meanwhile, withdrew 45 minutes before kick-off in Nantes following a groin problem suffered during the warm-up.

And full-back Liam Williams was on crutches after Gatland said he took a blow to his knee, but Wales are hopeful he will be fit for the quarter-final, with Wales ending their Pool C campaign as group winners with four successive victories following a 43-19 triumph.

“Toby (Faletau) has broken his arm so he will be out,” Gatland said.

“We are just going to assess Gareth over the next 72 hours. He has pulled his groin very high up.

“Talking to the medics, he has got a bit of power still in his leg which is a positive. It means he has not pulled it off the bone.

“We will probably know in the next 48-72 hours what we need to do with him. Whether we’ve got (time) for him to recover or replace him directly.

“We have got to look at a replacement for Faletau, whether that is directly as a loose-forward replacement or whether we look at another position.

“We’ve got a few sore players, particularly in the backs, after today’s game.

“If you do see Liam Williams on crutches, it is not that he has done anything significantly bad.

“He got a whack on the knee, and the medics, from a comfort perspective, have put him on crutches to save him walking around a bit.

“He has got a knock and probably won’t take a huge part in training in the early part of next week, but hopefully he will be fit for the quarter-final.”

Wales won their Rugby World Cup group and maintained an unbeaten march to the quarter-finals after beating Georgia 43-19 at Stade de la Beaujoire.

Warren Gatland’s team needed one point to finish top of Pool C after securing a last-eight place almost two weeks ago by defeating Australia in record-breaking fashion.

And they accomplished it on the same ground that 16 years ago Fiji condemned them to a World Cup pool-stage exit.

Wing Louis Rees-Zammit scored three tries, while there were also touchdowns for prop Tomas Francis, full-back Liam Williams and centre George North.

Wales ensured there would be no repeat of Georgia’s shock 13-12 success in Cardiff during the 2022 autumn Tests as they overcame fly-half Gareth Anscombe’s withdrawal just 45 minutes before kick-off due to a groin injury.

Anscombe’s late replacement Sam Costelow kicked five conversions and a penalty, although Georgia fought back to 24-19 adrift at one point through tries from Merab Sharikadze, Vano Karkadze and Davit Niniashvili, with Luka Matkava kicking two conversions.

A protracted mass brawl late in the game that spilled over the touchline and involved replacements from both sides saw Niniashvili and Wales substitute Taine Basham yellow-carded.

Wales were home and dry by this stage, although there was more injury concern when number eight Taulupe Faletau went off nursing what appeared to be a wrist problem.

Costelow mixed his running and kicking game well in the early stages, but Wales could get no change out of a well-organised Georgia defence.

There were plenty of errors in perfect playing conditions from both sides, but Wales broke the deadlock after 16 minutes.

A powerful lineout drive put Georgia on the back-foot, before Tomos Williams’ short inside pass resulted in Francis going over for a try that Costelow converted.

Wales had settled into a rhythm, and they struck from another attacking lineout just seven minutes later.

Lock Will Rowlands secured quality possession and, when the ball was moved wide Liam Williams finished impressively. Costelow’s conversion made it 14-0.

A Costelow penalty then opened up a 17-point advantage, and Wales appeared to be well on their way to a fourth successive pool victory.

Georgia regrouped as the first-half drew to a close, and Sharikadze claimed a try that Matkava converted following a sustained spell of pressure.

It was a warning for Wales that they could not switch off as they took a 17-7 lead into the interval.

Georgia began the second period on the front foot, but a midfield fumble saw North find Rees-Zammit, and the Gloucester speedster cruised clear from 60 metres out to claim his third try of the tournament.

Costelow converted, and it was exactly what Wales required after Georgia had threatened a fightback before the break.

Gatland changed the entire front row after 50 minutes, with Nicky Smith, Elliot Dee and Henry Thomas all joining the action.

And while Wales were comfortably ahead, Georgia kept searching for attacking opportunities in their final game of the competition after defeats against Australia and Fiji and a draw with Portugal.

Their resilience was then rewarded with 20 minutes left when replacement hooker Karkadze went over and Matkava converted.

And Georgia immediately conjured a third try, this time from Niniashvili, making it 24-18 and giving Wales plenty to be concerned about.

Gatland’s team were in danger of unravelling, but just when they needed it, Rees-Zammit applied a brilliant finish for his second try which Costelow converted, making it 31-19.

Biggar joined the action deep into the final quarter, and when Rees-Zammit claimed his hat-trick try, Wales were home before North’s try – and Wales’ sixth – completed the scoring, with Japan or Argentina now awaiting as their quarter-final opponents.

Ireland and Scotland are preparing for a pivotal Rugby World Cup qualification shootout in Paris.

Progression to the quarter-finals from Pool B is on the line for both sides on Saturday evening at Stade de France.

Here, the PA news agency picks out some of the major talking points.

The permutations – who needs what?

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One of the top five teams in the world is set to be eliminated from the tournament. Barring an unlikely result in the French capital, it will be Ireland, ranked number one, or Scotland, ranked fifth, who bite the dust. Ireland are firmly in the driving seat for qualification. All Andy Farrell’s team need to qualify is a losing bonus point while denying the Scots a winning bonus. That scenario would be enough for the Irish to finish top of the pool ahead of South Africa. The Scots face a far taller order. Gregor Townsend’s side must win with a bonus point (by scoring at least four tries) or by denying their opponents a losing bonus.

Springboks made to sweat

South African eyes will also be firmly fixed on what promises to be a tense affair. The reigning champions completed their pool-stage fixtures last weekend but, due to a quirk in the tournament regulations, could still crash out if all three nations end level on 15 points. For that improbable scenario to materialise, Scotland would need to win by 21 points or more and record a bonus point, with Ireland collecting a single losing bonus point. Talk of conspiracy theories and possible collusion was immediately put to Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber, who expressed hope there would be no “match-fixing”. Never one to shy away from mind games, South Africa director of rugby Rassie Erasmus claimed his side were in the preferential position.

Decade of dominance

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If Scotland are to upset the odds, they must snap an eight-match losing streak against their rivals stretching back to 2017. Ireland have dominated the fixture across the past decade, winning 12 of the last 13 meetings, including a 27-3 pool-stage success at the last World Cup and a 22-7 triumph en route to Six Nations Grand Slam glory earlier this year. Ireland’s players have talked down the significance of that run of results and feel Townsend’s men have improved since being mastered at Murrayfield in March. Nevertheless, the last time Scotland registered a victory over the Irish which would be sufficient for progression this weekend was way back in 2007 – a 31-21 warm-up win ahead of the last World Cup to be staged in France.

Sexton versus Russell

In an intriguing sub-plot, two of the world’s leading number 10s will vie to dictate proceedings. Veteran Ireland captain Johnny Sexton has seamlessly returned from an absence of almost six months through injury and suspension to lead his side to three successive victories and become his country’s all-time leading points scorer along the way. The 2018 world player of the year is as dependable and fiercely competitive as ever and repeatedly delivers when it matters most. Scotland’s Finn Russell, meanwhile, has the ability to unlock a game in any given moment. The talismanic 31-year-old, who was preferred to Sexton for the 2021 British and Irish Lions tour, may well be at the peak of his powers and will be out to conjure some magic when his nation needs it most.

Could gung-ho Scots spook the Irish?

Both sets of players have been in relaxed and confident mood when facing the media. The Scots, however, have been keen to stress that, as the less-fancied nation and the team with more to do, they have little to lose and that the pressure is all on Ireland. The Irish, of course, have proven in recent years that they can handle the heat of almost any situation. Yet this one is slightly different given the dynamics at play. Will the fact Ireland do not necessarily need to win the game take an edge off their play? And will Scotland, already renowned for their intent, go even more gung-ho than normal in search of early points? Captain Jamie Ritchie said his side will “fire all the bullets in their gun” and “won’t die wondering”. Townsend’s team, playing without inhibitions, could ask serious questions of the world’s number one team.